Surfs Up at Sony Animation

Sony Pictures Animation has put its second CG-animated feature into production, SURFS UP, a documentary-style look at penguin surfing, co-directed by Ash Brannon (TOY STORY 2) and Chris Buck (TARZAN), slated for a 2007 release.

Unlike the buddy comedy, OPEN SEASON, directed by Jill Culton, which will have a very graphic and squash-and-stretch design, SURFS UP will contain a much more natural approach.

In fact, Penney Finkelman Cox and Sandra Rabins, exec vps of Sony Pictures Animation, told VFXWORLD that viewers would be privy to an up close and personal view of surfing never before captured in the world of CGI. This will feel a little more realistic, with the crashing of the white waves and the clarity of the water, Rabins explained. This will not be hyper real like